Homes

101 East Whaley

The fourth house built in the early city of Longview, the Whaley House was constructed for hardware merchant Franklin L. Whaley and his wife Mary Caroline Rogers, who came to Long-view in 1870 with their 4 children. Born in Georgia in 1829, Mr. Whaley was later elected mayor of Longview. Five generations of the Whaley family lived in the home, including Mrs. Frankie Whaley Tate, who lived there from age 7 to age 94.

The lumber for the Whaley house was hand hewn and planed on site. The original house was 4 rooms and one and one-half stories with a large cellar and a fireplace to warm each room. The rock for the 7 chimneys was quarried from the hill behind the home site. Built in a central hall configuration, the structure features three dormers above a wide front porch, heavy double doors framed by side glasses etched with beautiful geometric design, gabled pavilions, fine milled wood details, and elaborate jigsawn balustrade and piers. Wooden pegs secured the floor, which was constructed of large-edged pine. The east and west wings were added later. The west room became the "preacher’s room," reserved for visiting clergy because there were then no hotels in Longview.

The Whaley House was purchased by the law firm Sharp, Ward, Ross, McDaniel, and Price in 1979, and significant restoration was completed, including structural stabilization. The original bedrooms became private offices. A new wing of 6000 square feet was also added in 1983. In 1996 John Sloane purchased the home and continued the preservation.

Today the Whaley House is the proud home of the law firm of Sloan, Bagley, Hatcher, & Perry, and serves our community as an excellent example of the adaptive reuse of historic homes.